Who is my #2 fan?

If you want to join the Casey Lartigue Fan Club, there is already a president and number one fan in it!

You can’t be my number one fan because Eben Appleton has already claimed that title.

How much would it cost to get you to pose in front of a poster with my face on it?

Okay, so maybe some people would do so for free, if my poster somehow ended up in a mall or book store.

How many of you would want that poster in your home? Yes, my poster is in Eben Appleton’s home in Tennessee.

I can imagine guests coming over, asking, “Wait, who?”

Well, if they know Eben, that means they already know who I am!

Sometimes she praises me so much, I will ask her if I know the Casey Lartigue she is talking about.

I’m not a singer or a celebrity. So I can’t imagine that anyone would want my poster.

Where did the poster come from? Last year when I was a keynote speaker at the World Youth Rally, they made that poster. I couldn’t believe it! They wanted to feature me as a speaker, and they certainly did that!

Then after I finished speaking, I asked them what they were going to do with the posters. From previous experience, those things get trashed when an event is over.

After all, who would want such a poster?

I asked if I could have them.

One poster would be for the TNKR office. I wasn't sure where we would put it, but certainly there must be a place for a 6 foot poster featuring the American co-founder. TNKR co-founder Eunkoo Lee was enthusiastic about it. Perhaps it was because it was the first time I had recommended any kind of a decoration in the office.

The other poster would be for the only person in the world who would want it: Eben Appleton! Of course some drive-by commentators with instant Facebook responses to everything who come to conclusions with little or no information might conclude that I was presumptuous in thinking that anyone would want my poster.

That means you don't know Eben Appleton!

She came to Seoul in 2017 not to visit Seoul, but to visit TNKR and meet the American co-founder in person.

As I wrote a few months ago,

Have you ever had a fan?

I mean, the kind of fan who is surprised to learn you walk on water--because she thought you could fly.

The kind of fan who reads everything you write, then summarizes it for others who were not lucky enough to have read what you wrote. Then she constantly reminds you about what you wrote.

The kind of fan who even makes a calendar just for you.

Yes, I have that kind of fan, and her name is Eben Appleton!!!!

For the people who get stomachaches when they see other people celebrating life and having fun, I should add:

* Eben is love. She goes up and down Facebook making nice comments about many people, praising them as being handsome or beautiful, smart, etc. She talks to my family members more often than I do. There might others who think Eben is their #1 fan.

* It isn't just me, okay? She loves TNKR. Such as making this 2020 calendar for us.

Through all of that niceness about others, somehow I always end up being the one she loves the most, I may just be a close or far second to her hubby, Charlie.

I have had fans before. My first ones were back in high school when I wrote "Casey's Corner" for my high school newspaper. I remember in college when I met a student who had my columns on his wall. I have had some other fans over the years.

But they can't compare with Eben Appleton!

Eben wants my autograph on everything. Photos. Articles. Books. Whatever. She replies to everything I post, watches every video, reminds me of the many witty and profound things she thinks I have said or written, shares almost everything I post on Facebook, sends me messages often and waits for me to respond. Sometimes I must tell her: Don't donate more, your monthly donation is already super generous and enough.

So with that six foot poster, should I have even wondered, "Yes, but will she really want this?"

I sent it without letting her know what it was, and she was overjoyed to receive it. She immediately found a place for it in her home (unlike most people who would have tried to figure out how to put in the proper recycling bin).

So if you happen to be one of my fans, let me know. But please recognize that if you want to join the Casey Lartigue Fan Club, there is already a president and number one fan in it!

***

P.S.: Many volunteers give a host of explanations and excuses about why they can't set up a fundraiser for TNKR. Eben has set up four.

TNKR Forever (Eben)

Happy 79th Birthday, Eben Appleton

$50 for 50 years (Eben)

Eben Appleton Birthday Fundraiser

Rich talking back

The rich are talked about very often in negative terms, but how often do the rich respond in kind? Australian billionaire Gina Rinehart, who inherited most of her money but apparently has also done very well with it, recently railed against class warfare and had some advice for the non-rich : "There is no monopoly on becoming a millionaire," she writes. "If you're jealous of those with more money, don't just sit there and complain. Do something to make more money yourself - spend less time drinking, or smoking and socializing and more time working." She complained about politicians raising taxes, regulations that slow investment, and other anti-business policies that harm the poor. "If you want to help the poor and our next generation, make investment, reinvenstment and businesses welcome."

Common Sense on North Korea (Korea Times, April 2, 2012)

By Casey Lartigue, Jr. As interesting as Kookmin University professor Andrei Lankov’s writings are, there is nothing quite like attending one of his lectures. He can barely restrain himself behind the podium, often pointing and waving his arms. I also enjoy his unscripted speeches, but his answers in Q&A sessions are like the difference between watching Michael Jordan shoot baskets in warm-ups and an actual game. I have finally discovered the secret behind Lankov’s consistently solid analysis about North Korea: Use common sense. At an Asan Institute conference last summer, he argued that North Korea watchers should try to understand North Korea from its perspective. Don’t most people know that you must understand the mindset of others you are dealing with? Yet, common sense in theory gets ignored politically. From the North Korean perspective, nuclear weapons are the best thing they’ve got going. They will NOT give them up easily, even if President Obama ...

Random photos from today

I went walking around today. Whereas some people like to go walking in the mountains, I enjoy walking around in the city. Well, not D.C. or other cities with many homeless, crazy and/or armed people walking around... * * * Here's where I had lunch today. About $1.90 for a hamburger hamberger. * * * Ha-ha! Bet you never would have guessed that Batman is a drinking place in Korea! * * * Man Clinic? The Koreans walking by seemed to be very curious about why I was taking a photo of a "Man Clinic." They may know something I don't know...Actually, I wasn't curious enough to go in and find out what it was... * * * Right down the street from the Man Clinic...there's a Love Shop! I love the euphemism. "Love Shop" sounds much better than Sex Shop. I'm guessing that if you don't go to the "Love Shop" to buy condoms that you may need to visit the Man Clinic a short time later? * * * Nobo...

To be a good volunteer, use your brain (Korea Times, December 5, 2012)

By Casey Lartigue, Jr. There is probably an unwritten rule that a celebrity offering to do volunteer work for a good cause should immediately be embraced. Well, that’s not what happened to Jeong So-dam, the glamorous Korean cable TV announcer when our paths crossed on Nov. 29. Ms. Jeong was the MC of an event about American political philosophy hosted by the Association for Economic Evolution. During my speech about American libertarianism since 1940, I discussed my volunteer work for North Korean refugees. After the speech, Jeong approached me, asking how she could help. I gave her the same tough love I give to potential volunteers by asking: “Who are you?” After all, if you are Bill Gates, then open your wallet. If you speak four languages, then help with translation work. So I first stress to potential volunteers: Use your brain. Tell us about your skills and interests so together we can figure out your initial role. Jeong was good-natured about it, rather than c...

Last weekend: Suicide, Kim Young Ha, NK

Credit: Joanne Cho Event 1: Friday night I went to a talk given by Fulbright junior researcher Joanne Cho. She did a great job putting together statistics about some of the most commonly cited reasons that so many Koreans commit suicide. Probably the most provocative tidbit: Cho watched 86 dramas from the spring of 2012 to now, she says that 63 had "scenes depicting or discussing suicide" in a favorable light (as a way to solve problems, that troubled people can be forgiven for their sins and are even seen as sympathetic). Another interesting tidbit: While it is often cited that Korea is number one in the world in suicide (among countries reporting reliable statistics), what I had not realized or had forgotten is that Korean men are number 8 in the world compared to men in other countries with reliable statistics, Korean women are #1 in the world when compared to women in other countries. My questions for the speaker: 1) What was a finding in your research th...

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